


Curtain Call

by magicandarchery



Category: Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, M/M, Malec, side Clace, side sizzy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-22
Updated: 2016-06-22
Packaged: 2018-07-16 15:16:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7273306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicandarchery/pseuds/magicandarchery
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's opening night of Magnus' play. Alec is a nervous wreck and just wants everything to be perfect.</p>
<p>A companion follow-up to <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/7136816/chapters/16205660">In The Stacks</a>, so you'll want to read that first if you haven't already.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Curtain Call

**Author's Note:**

> These two wouldn't let me not write this, so here you go. Malec fluff ahead!
> 
> Thank you, thank you, thank you to [Jez](http://archiveofourown.org/users/JezTheMadFicster/pseuds/JezTheMadFicster) for the read through and talking me off the ledge last night. Follow Jez on [tumblr](http://jezthemadficster.tumblr.com/) because awesome people are awesome.

“Hey Iz,” Alec starts as he taps his knuckles on the doorframe of Isabelle’s bedroom, adjusting the suit jacket he’s wearing as he lowers his hand and Isabelle pauses in her makeup routine to look over at him. “Does this look okay?”

Isabelle smiles brightly at him, taking in the dark blue suit, both the jacket and the pants tailored perfectly, accented by a bright white shirt and tan shoes, and sets the brush in her hand down on the vanity before standing. Her hair is straight and the front is clipped back to keep it off of her face while she does her makeup. “Alec this looks …” she starts but the thought trails off as she runs her fingers under the lapels of the jacket. The way that her words trail off can’t possibly be good, Alec thinks, and he begins to fidget, rocking from one foot to the other, worrying at a spot in the palm of his hand. Isabelle takes his hands into hers and gives them a firm squeeze that is both gentle and reassuring at the same time. “You look amazing, big brother,” she finishes and Alec breathes out slowly.

“Okay,” he says quietly with a nod.

“It’s just a college play, Alec,” she says gently, but without making it seem as though the play is unimportant. She knows that the play is important to both Alec and Magnus in different ways. She smiles at him as she reaches her hand up to cup his cheek. Mostly she wants him to know that he doesn’t need to be nervous.

“I-I know,” Alec blinks his eyes closed for a moment as he nods, trying to appear calmer than he feels. “I just - I want to look nice. For Magnus and -,”

Isabelle holds her hand up in front of him to silence him. “Magnus doesn’t care what you wear as long as you’re there.”

“No, I know. It’s just that … I mean … it’s … you know …” Alec stammers and Isabelle can’t help but love her brother more.

“You know what? We’ll all make it a night. I’ll call Clary and Simon and tell them to look sharp.”

“Jace is never going to go for it,” Alec says, his voice dropping slightly.

“You just worry about being the amazing and supportive boyfriend you are, _hermano._ Leave Jace to me.”

**

“Remind us why we’re here so early?” Jace asks as the three of them stand together, waiting for the doors of the auditorium to open and for Simon and Clary to join them.

“So we can get good seats,” Isabelle answers for Alec, who is busy working his thumb at the palm of his hand again.

“Doors open in ten minutes and there’s, like, twelve people here, Izzy,” Jace observes as he looks around. It’s an exaggeration, of course, there’s actually a fairly decent line, but it’s made up of mostly family and friends of the cast. The student body will fill in closer to the time of curtain call.

Isabelle fixes him with a look that clearly tells him to behave - for Alec’s sake.

“Shit,” Alec mutters and Isabelle turns to him.

“What is it?” she asks, following Alec’s line of sight, but not sure what it is that he’s looking at exactly.

Alec looks at her and leans down so that only she can hear him speak. “I didn’t get Magnus flowers or anything. Do you think I should?”

Isabelle has never seen Alec this nervous, this anxious to get something right, and she can’t help but smile, because that’s Alec. He never does anything halfway. He’s always been an all or nothing sort of person that strives to be perfect. “Alec, you bought a new suit to dress up for him,” she says and links her arm through his. “It’ll be more than enough."

“Okay,” Alec nods and goes back to worrying at the palm of his hand.

Jace looks at Isabelle and can’t help his own small smile as he shifts his gaze to Alec. “Hey, bro, just breathe and relax,” he says and rests his hand on Alec’s shoulder. “So, how did you convince dad to let you buy a new suit anyway?”

“I told him I had an interview for an internship,” Alec answers with a slight shrug. It isn’t like he could have told his dad the real reason he needed - or wanted - the suit.

Jace and Isabelle exchange looks. They’ve both known about Alec for years, but their parents are another matter entirely and they know that something will probably have to give over the summer now that Magnus is in the picture. With as serious as Alec is about this relationship, they aren’t sure how much longer he can hide from their parents. They say nothing to Alec, though, and keep the thought between them because breaking this kind of news is something that Alec has to do on his own and there will never be a good time for him to do it. They both know how their parents will react and know that they will have to prepare themselves to help keep Alec together when the time does come.

The line starts moving as the doors to the auditorium open. Clary and Simon practically speed walk up to where Alec, Isabelle, and Jace are in line, both looking extremely apologetic.

“Sorry guys,” Clary says, instantly taking hold of Jace’s arm as Jace leans over to press a kiss to her cheek.

“Is everything okay?” Isabelle asks as Simon stands next to her.

“Yeah, we just had to turn back to the apartment after getting halfway here because the heel on my shoe broke,” Clary says with a shrug.

“You wanting to walk here in high heels anyway is insane,” Simon smiles at her and looks at Isabelle. “You too. Seriously, my feet hurt just watching you guys wear them.”

Isabelle just grins at him as she unlinks her arm from Alec’s to link with Simon. “Yes, but you love it.”

“I can’t argue that. At all.” Simon nods. Alec glances at them. “Nice suit. I like it,” Simon nods and Alec breathes a quick ‘thanks’.

Alec is the first into the auditorium after their tickets are taken and he quickly scans the available seating options. People are scattered throughout and Alec starts down the aisle to find the best seat. He stops at the fifth row where he sees five seats available. Alec lets them each file in, one by one, and takes the seat on the end to be closer to the center of the stage.

He idly flips through the program he was handed when they entered to keep him busy until the play starts, the sound of chatter surrounding him rising in volume as the auditorium starts to fill. Despite the added noise in the theater, he can hear the others murmuring about the cast list and his stomach turns when he hears Simon, Clary, and Isabelle talking about Camille Belcourt. Alec isn’t entirely sure that he understands the connection, but somehow Simon knows her.

Alec knows her as well. Or at least he knows enough about her to know that he wants nothing more than to keep her as far away from Magnus as he can, to keep from having to see the shattered look that still creeps up into Magnus’ eyes when Camille is around, even though Alec knows that he tries to hide it. But that’s the protector coming out in Alec. It’s a sick twist, really, that Camille has been cast as Beatrice and Magnus will have to convince every person in the auditorium of his love for her.

“Don’t even get me started on Camille,” Alec says, interrupting the conversation that Isabelle and Clary are having.

“Jealous that she gets to kiss Magnus in the final act?” Isabelle teases, nudging Alec’s elbow.

“Me? Jealous of Camille? Absolutely not,” he says  and can’t stop himself from chuckling at his little sister. “It’s the other way around.”

“Why would Camille be jealous of you?” Simon asks innocently. It’s not a question meant to offend Alec and thankfully for Simon, Alec doesn’t take it that way.

“Because I have what she wants back,” Alec answers and flips through his program again. He won’t say that he hasn’t taken some sort of pleasure in flaunting his relationship with Magnus in front of her.

“And that is?” Jace asks, leaning forward so he can see Alec.

“Magnus,” Alec answers. The story of Magnus and Camille and how she broke his heart is long, complicated, disastrous, and one that Magnus can tell them when he’s ready to, and Alec is glad that no one can press the issue further when the lights in the theater fade out and the stage lights come up.

It’s surreal to Alec to sit and watch the play instead of being a participant in it, to hear the dialogue that he knows and can recite now by heart delivered by someone else. It feels like both an eternity and a blink of an eye since that first reading with Magnus back in the library, when he freely admitted that he found Shakespeare to be overrated. The past two months of helping Magnus become his character has only further solidified for Alec that this play is his favorite of Shakespeare’s works, even if only because Magnus has made it so.

He inhales a breath when Magnus appears on the stage for the first time in full costume, his hair soft and not perfectly styled as it normally is, and wearing stage makeup instead of his usual kohl eyeliner, eyeshadow, and glitter. It isn’t that Alec has never seen Magnus without his makeup before, he has on many occasions when it’s been just the two of them, but he’s always still surprised at how handsome and powerful Magnus is without all the extra layers. And outside of the theater, Alec knows that he’s the only one who gets to see Magnus that way and he can’t help the tiny smile that curves the corners of his mouth.

As the act progresses, Isabelle glances over at Alec and takes note of the smile. It’s a smile that’s both familiar and completely foreign to her. The love and pride that she knows is there, but there’s something deeper there too, something that she hasn’t seen from Alec until now as his focus is directed completely at the stage, at Magnus. No one else in the world exists in that moment and even though Isabelle can’t quite put her finger on that extra element in Alec’s smile, she knows that whatever it is is the type of thing that is so rare it only happens once in a lifetime and not everyone finds it.

The lights come up at intermission and Isabelle is still looking at Alec.

“What?” he asks, suddenly self conscious.

“Nothing, big brother,” she smiles and leans over to kiss his cheek before she stands to stretch her legs.

**

They’re all standing in the lobby of the arts building when Magnus finally joins them after, dressed casually in jeans and a long sleeved shirt. Alec is leaning against the wall, hands behind his back, laughing at something Simon said.

It’s Jace, surprisingly, who sees Magnus first and starts to applaud, each of the others joining in with him. Magnus shakes his head with a smile and offers them another bow before moving into the empty spot beside Alec. He hears Clary saying something to him, but his mind is completely overtaken by Alec and how completely irresistible he looks in the suit and Magnus can’t help but admire him appreciatively.

“Do I have you to thank for this?” he asks Isabelle.

“Only for the four of us.” Isabelle gestures to herself, Simon, Clary, and Jace. “This is all Alec,” she gestures to Alec and Alec can feel his face flush as he glances down at his shoes, but he keeps smiling just the same.

Alec turns his head slightly to glance at Magnus and Magnus looks stunned, flattered, and everything in between in equal measure. Magnus would have been more than happy for Alec to just be there to support him, but this … this is beyond anything that Magnus has ever dared to hope for, that someone would feel so much for him that they would treat a university performance the same as if he were on Broadway. Magnus isn’t sure that he knows what to say, which is rare, so instead he just reaches for Alec’s hand. 

“I'm pretty sure Yogurtland is still open,” Clary says to the group at large. “I’m thinking some fro-yo is in order to celebrate such a wonderful performance.”

“It is cause for celebration,” Alec agrees, folding his fingers through Magnus’. “My treat.”

It’s not a far walk to the shop, and Alec and Magnus hang back slightly from the rest of the group.

“I know I don’t have to say this, but thank you for coming tonight,” Magnus says as the others put some more distance between them. It’s the best way he can think to say what he wants, even though he wants to say so much more.

“Well, I had to see if Camille was a better Beatrice than me,” Alec grins, his free hand sliding into his pocket.

“She definitely didn’t nail the kiss in the final act the way you did,” Magnus laughs, thinking back to their first read through together. “Though, to be fair, I don’t think anyone could.”

Alec smiles and shakes his head. “There’s just no dedication to good acting anymore,” he teases and bumps at Magnus’ shoulder gently with his own. “I don’t think anyone else is coming back to see the show tomorrow or Sunday, but I’ll be there.” Alec changes the topic easily.

“You don’t have to come tomorrow or Sunday, you know,” Magnus says but smiles all the same that Alec would consider coming to all three shows. “Especially because you don’t like Shakespeare.”

“True, I don’t,” Alec nods. “But, I love you, so …” he finishes the thought with a grin and a slight shrug. He continues to walk a short way further until he feels a pull at his arm and turns to see Magnus standing frozen, and it’s easy to read his caught off guard look this time. Alec’s cheeks flush and he’s glad that even with the streetlights the cover of night hides how much they’re burning. He closes the space between himself and Magnus, never letting go of Magnus’ hand. “I-I … I get if you’re not ready to say it back,” his voice is soft as he speaks and he reaches his free hand to the back of his neck.

That tick has always been endearing to Magnus. He might even admit to it being a weakness of his. Except that he doesn’t want to be the reason that Alec is anxious and nervous when he had been so sure of himself and his words just moments before. He grasps Alec’s lapel and pulls him in, kissing him slow and deep and with purpose, taking in the smell of soap and cologne and everything that is Alec. He doesn’t need words to tell Alec just how much he loves him back. He feels Alec’s arm around him, drawing him in until the gap between them is nonexistent.

“Oh my God you two, I swear!” Jace shouts at them from where the rest of the group has stopped to wait for Alec and Magnus to catch up.

Magnus is the first to break and smile against Alec’s lips before laughing softly. “Does your brother always have to interrupt us?”

“He can’t help it, it’s habit by now,” Alec grins, keeping Magnus close as he drops a barely there kiss onto the corners of Magnus’ mouth.

“Seriously, get a room!” Isabelle joins in and Alec rolls his eyes at her laugh.

“Don’t tempt us, Izzy!” Alec raises his head and shouts back. He turns again, his arm around Magnus’ shoulders now as they move to join the others.

“I’m trying to figure out if Ragnor and Catarina or your siblings are the lesser of two evils tonight,” Magnus teases, sliding his arm around Alec’s back under his jacket.

“I do have a bigger bed,” Alec winks over at him.

“And I wouldn’t want to wake Ragnor up. He’s very cranky when he’s woken up.”

“I have a new lock on my door,” Alec adds.

Magnus grins and wonders at just how much better this night that’s already been full of surprises can get.

 

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked it, let me know! Comments, kudos, and love are all appreciated. Come talk to me on [tumblr](http://shad0w-writer.tumblr.com/)


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